Primary school governor backs fairer funding for schools campaign

A school governor has backed the campaign to get fairer funding for Sheffield schools.

Jason Pepper, a governor at Oughtibridge Primary School, in Oughtibridge, is one of more than 6,600 people who have signed the petition, launched by The Star and Sheffield Telegraph.

READ MORE: Education leader calls for fairer funding for Sheffield schoolsFigures revealed schools in city will receive £743 per pupil less than Manchester in 2018/19, and although the Government's new nation funding formula - aimed at redistributing funding to historically underfunded areas - helps the situation, Sheffield does not get a fair deal quickly enough to avoid a crisis.

Headteachers have warned of mass redundancies, shorter school weeks and bigger class sizes as they struggle to balance the books.

The Department For Education said the purpose of the new funding formula is to correct historic disparities in the funding system, which involves redistributing funding to historically underfunded areas.

A spokesman said that schools in the area will attract an increase in funding of 6.6 per cent - equivalent to £20.4 million - when the NFF is implemented in full by 2020/21.

To sign the petition click here. You can also email news@thestar.co.uk, write to Sam Jackson, The Star, The Balance, Pinfold Street, S1 2GU or take a photograph with the hashtag #FairFundSheffieldSchools.